Breath Of Life
by Wi
Summary: There are certain actions that people just don't think through. Like, if a gate child decides to travel to Ametrisis. No one thinks about the migraine dealing with muscle bound alchemists. Or having the Gate go six different ways to hell. But this gate child wouldn't want to learn about humanity any other way. Based upon the events of Brotherhood.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

_A throbbing pulse surrounded it on all sides, a beat that was familiar to it because the rhythm was the life pulse of The Gate. The heartbeat of Cosmos and Chaos wrapped into one, it was the home of the Gatechild. It was the home of a human soul weathered away by age and the infinite truth that The Gate provided, and yet not all things in the past had been carved away from it. It still retained it's human curiosity, and wondered about the life that it could no longer recall._

_This would be the seed that was planted._

_Years passed and unlike its fellow children, content in The Truth and the hivemind it provided, the Gatechild grew antsy with the unnaturally retained curiosity being a thorn in it's mind. It's questions of what the sun felt like or the color of the great deserts was brushed aside by The Truth, who could no longer see the relevancy in such thoughts._

_The seed was blooming and would come to full fruition the day that a human life wandered into the gate through the windows of the human's mind. The Gatechild remembered that day clearly, the minds of it's fellow gate children disturbed by the wandering soul. But the Gatechild, the one burdened by human curiosity was drawn to it's light like a moth to flame. All at once it saw it's chance for exploration, and seized the mind and body of the child. _

_It felt pain for the first time in over a hundred years, a throbbing sensation that was uncomfortable in its intensity. The mind of the child fought back, it could feel her terror as she fought back the alien presence in mind. The Gatechild heard the agonizing screams of Truth,with it's haunting presence drawing closer to them and moved by a sudden human panic the Gatechild pushed the soul out of the body._

_The child took it's last shuddering breath and died._

_And the Gatechild felt it's first pangs of regret and horror as it realized it killed a human being, sobs from pain and shock racking its chest as it sat in the hospitaI where a young teenage girl should've been._

**Author's Notes:**

**And so this fanfiction begins on a rather screwed up note, but that it most certainly the last of that you will see for quite some time. I needed to establish how exactly the Gatechild got to Ametrisis without paying the toll of Truth, though it unintentionally payed a high price for its curiosity.**

**From now on, because the Gatechild has gained a body with a gender, it will be referred to with female pronouns and such.**

**And if you stick around, you'll see that's not the last thing that she gives up and we see the introduction of some main characters! *cheers***

**Some of you that have read the fanfiction 'The Blood Alchemist' and it's sequel 'Reprive' may see some similar concepts as the story goes on. I have discussed this with LeFay Strent and she has given me the a okay to go along with it! I thank her for being such a good sport. ^^**

**I really don't expect this fic to get popular, but if you can please leave a review. I'll give you lots of internet cookies. :3**

**Cheers & God bless!**

**- Wi**


	2. Genesis

**Chapter 1: Genesis**

**_AN: I forgot to mention it in the last note, but this story begins a year before the beginning events of Brotherhood._**

It was a beautiful day in Central, the wispy white clouds barely seen among the never ending azure of the sky. It was, Maes Hughes thought to himself, a wonderful day for a lunch picnic or to spend with his beautiful family. It was not a day to be spending in the Central Hospital, the military officer standing in front of the pristine white building with his face pressed into a thin line.

His green eyes were filled with a kind of repressed sadness, and his right hand twitched as he reached in his pocket for a large packet of pictures he kept with him. Tanned hands found the photos of his three year old Elicia, a wide smile splitting her face in the polaroid and mirrored in her fathers.

"Hughes!" Came a deep baritone voice, filled with familiarity as Hughes gave a wave in reply to Major Armstrong, his bald head with a single blonde cowlick not the only thing sparkling in the afternoon sunlight. Hughes had recently moved up to the position of lieutenant colonel and had gained the office of Investigations and Intelligence.

Major Armstrong, a old buddy from the Ishvalan Civil War, had recently transferred to the office as their resident State Alchemist when the Armstrong family recently moved back to one of the many homes in Central.

The large mans hands dwarfed Hughes own as he shook hands with the state alchemist. Hughes generally liked working with Armstrong, though his form of intense enthusiasm still threw the Lieutenant Colonel at times.(1)

He hoped that today's investigation would go smoothly as they entered the hospital, it's cool interior chilling the sweat on Hughes immediately beneath the heavy military uniform. Sharp green eyes behind glasses caught the movement of a white hospital coat, and a reedy redheaded man shook both of their hands with his one, the other wrapped in a sling.

"I'm so glad you came. I hope that you can finally catch the horrifying person who could endanger so many lives." The doctor said, his watery blue eyes filled with anger. Because in truth, the military pair was there to interview the only coherent witness after the orphanage the person lived in was burned down to the ground.

"The young girl is a teenager, probably around fourteen years of age." The doctor said as they walked the halls, handing Armstrong a clipboard.

"Probably?" Hughes questioned, his heart inwardly aching for the young girl. But the doctor simply shook his head in reply.

"Too much trauma. She can't even remember her own name, though she is trying. Badly injured, she was found face down among the remains and all records of the orphans burned down with the building."

"And the adults?" Armstrong asked, not fully briefed before taking the case.

"Dead." Replied the doctor grimly."The one that weren't dead from suffocation already died soon after in the hospital, and they were all too drunk to tell the earth from the sky anymore. " He once again shook his head, those pale blue orbs filled with worry.

Hughes was left in deep thought while Armstrong expressed his sympathies. This would be a hard nut to crack as a case, the arsonist had left no tracks whatsoever.

"All the other orphans are simply too young to be questioned, but our Jane Doe.." He trailed off, then pressed on. "Her left arm was crushed, it had to be amputated and she has huge third degrees burns across her back where the rubble was against her."

The doctor continued. "She's honestly lucky her back wasn't broken. She slipped into a coma a few days ago, she just woke up. She's healing though, at an almost inhuman rate and her strength is increasing everyday." He finished dryly, fingering the cast around his arm.

The girl had probably broken it, Hughes deduced. That particular orphanage was the last resort for delinquent children and he wouldn't be surprised if the girl was all sass and spitfire at that particular age.

The party of three had reached the witness's room door, and when the doctor opened it Hughes was surprised at what he saw. Sunlight filtered through the windows of the windows of the room, brightening the atmosphere and matching it in her hospital bed was a whippet of a young teenage girl, her unusual violet eyes trailed on the officers behind a sheet of platinum blonde hair that stretched down to the middle of her chest. What threw Hughes was how at ease and almost detached she seemed with her environment. Most victims of fire where usually were in shock or denial, negative emotions that affected every move they made.

"Doctor Calos." She said, her voice almost devoid of emotion and the redhead gave a start, a shaky smile on his face as he went over and patted the girl on the shoulder.

"Hey there." He replied, manner gentle as always."Today I have two men from the military office to investigate the fire. Do you mind if they ask you a few questions?" He asked, and she simply shook her head yes. Hughes and Armstrong took that as there cue to walk into the room, bringing up two chairs from it's corners.

After exchanging a look, the two military officers looked tentatively at their subject. Hughes cleared his throat, calling the girls attention to him and enduring the full brunt of those violet eyes.

"Hello, my name is Hughes and this is my partner is Armstrong." He said calmly and kindly, gesturing toward the large man. "How are you feeling today?"

He asked the young girl, who simply turned her gaze toward the windows.

"My body is healing." She replied, voice level effective and very emotionless. She glanced down at the place where the left arm would be, looking at the stump with an almost morbid fascination.

_Oh boy._ Hughes though to himself, a chilling feeling crawling over his skin. There was something off about this girl that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"...Okay..." He said after a pause. "Could you tell me your name?" He asked.

"I do not remember."

"Your Age?"

"No."

"Where you are from?"

"No."

"The fire? Anything?"

"No."

At each question, the girl frustration seemed to only be rising. Her words began to get short and clipped, as if she was trying to fight an impulse she couldn't quite control. A arm rose to grip the metal bar at her bedside as a nervous tick and there was a noticeable squelch of metal as she crushed it. A set of coughing fits followed, and Doctor Calos immediately was there to soothe her.

"Perhaps we shall try another time." Armstrong interjected.

"Definitely." Maes agreed as he signaled Calos to follow.

The two were left outside for simply a moment and the slender man joined them. A moment of silence seemed to hang over the group. Then Armstrong made a small noise.

"I can take it no longer..."

"Oh here we go."

"Wha- whatever do you mean Hughes?"

"OH WHAT A TERRIBLE FATE TO HAPPEN TO SUCH A SPRIGHTLY YOUTH! IT TROUBLES MY HEART SO."

"MAJOR PLEASE PUT BACK ON YOUR CLOTHES."

"DO NOT MY MUSCLES REVITALIZE YOU TOWARD YOUR CAUSE, DOCTOR?"

"MAJOR PLEASE STOP."

Maes only watched as his subordinate and the doctor continued thier antics though he did not know he was the only one. A Jane Doe watched, her violet eyes pressed to the glass outside her room. A pain blossomed in her body and she coughed, blood dripping onto the hand she covered her mouth with.

She could not understand the humans, their emotions and behaviors. The frustration had scared her, after feeling nothing for so long she wasn't prepared for the burst of hot, tight anger. She had no idea what was going on with her body and the memories of the human she... She... Those memories were not with her. She knew that she was stronger than the weaklings around her, the metal felt like the equivalent of crushing an eggshell, but the body could not handle the power output her soul gave. A thought occurred to her, one that amplified the nausea with fear.

What if this body rejected her soul?

Though he could not figure it out, the officer that had questioned her had _felt_ her true nature. She realized to survive, she would have to learn what it meant to be human. How to act, how to hold things while not using her true strength, how to live amongst the humans she had paid a price so dearly to be a part of. The bloodied hand clenched in resolution.

She would not let this life go to waste.

**Author's Notes:**

**(1) It is a headcannon of mine that Hughes got used to Armstrongs emotional outbursts and eventually stopped giving fucks over time. Hughes is pretty flexible, but Armstrong is a extreme.**

**The case surrounding the Arsony will be fully explained at a later date and will be the major tie in for the plot, as well as her relationships to alchemists and to, eventually, the homunculi. **

**And so we begin our story in the hospital. It's funny how the characters for this show, canon or not, end up in there a lot. With a gate child stuck in a human teenage girls body with all the feels.**

**One might ask why I gave her supreme strength of a homunculus, and yet curbed it by making her body too weak to handle the power input. Well, logically her soul doesn't belong in that human body, their would have to be consequences if she used superhuman strength or speed. **

**As I develop her character further, I will be putting flaws in place to make sure that she does not become a Mary Sue which is easily something that could happen with a character such as this. Even so, her relationships with the canon chars started off rocky. Hughes has the hebbie jeebies, and he's the most likable of them all. This is gonna be fun. XD**

**Hopefully you liked this well enough to review~**

**Cheers and God Bless!**

**-Wi**


	3. Otl

**Chapter 2: I've already run out of clever chapter names (otl)**

"SUCH BEAUTIFUL WORK YOUNG WOMAN." A loud and boisterous voice cried out, accompanied by sparkles.

"It's too late to kick him out right?" A rather tired voice asked in the background.

"Yep." Replied a faintly amused Lieutenant Colonel Hughes as he stared at the exasperated doctor and the perplexed young lady in the hospital bed, who had just finished her rehabilitation exercise with the encouragement of Armstrong.

Hughes sighed. To be honest, the duo had finished their routine of questioning about an hour ago but Armstrong had grown fond of the girl and had decided to stay. Hughes was in no hurry to return to his own paperwork which was calling his name, and the girl held his interest. In only two weeks time, she had grown by leaps and bounds, the bandages off and revealing pink, but healed skin around the back and across her arm.

It made him uneasy, but even more so was the enigma of the girls personality. She was cold, detached and factual without restraint or any feelings of social grace and when she did show emotion she seemed almost perplexed. It was almost as if the girl was learning how to deal with emotions and it threw the Lt. Colonel because he had no idea what to do with her.

Along with the Arson she was tied to.

Though technically the case was without any leads at this point, the Lt. Colonel felt it was impossible to give up. The other children had looked desolate, almost hopeless. That orphanage had been the last possible place before they were kicked out on the streets, and they young ones did not want to be there. The looks of desperation had hardened his resolve toward catching the arsonists, and for the sake of the children he had pulled a few strings...

_And yet, Armstrong seems willing to teach her._ He thought as he watched the two interact. She seemed to be fond of emulating the older man's behavior like a mother bird teaches it's chicks how to fly.

"Indeed I am strong." The girl deadpanned as she flex her one arm, a sparkle following the movement and Alex nodding in approval.

"He's corrupting my patient." The Doctor huffed, though his eyes held a small bit of masked amusement. He had mentioned that after the majors third visit, she had been practicing smiles in the mirror though they were awkward.

"Do you have more pictures of your tiny lifeform lieutenant?" She asked, and Hughes was surprised to see that was speaking to him.

"Tiny life- do you mean Elicia?" He asked, perking up immediately at the girls nod.

"Then you can have two for one today! Both my lovely daughter and my wife are here today for your viewing pleasure!" Hughes said enthusiastically, immediately assaulting the poor girl with pictures as she took a look at them, repeating the names of places and family members under her breath as she looked at the pictures with interest.

"She is an attractive tiny lifeform." The girl said awkwardly.

"Attractive? Naw, not yet. She's more cute than anything." Hughes replies cheerfully. "You don't think so Evelyn?" He asked.

"Evelyn?" She asked curiously.

"Ah.. Well. Your files burned up so there is no record of your name. Besides, you look like an Evelyn."

"I see." She said quietly, gripping the pictures a little tighter. "Yes... Your Ti- I mean your daughter is er...very cute." She said almost shyly, an unidentified emotion in her violet eyes with a tiny smile.

"Yup! She's gonna be a foxy thing!" He said proudly, then his face contorted into a shape the young girl could only describe as jealousy as she watched his hand creep toward his side. "And the boys better keep away from her too." He growled as his grip tightened on a shiny metal object that Evelyn couldn't quite see. But apperantly Doctor Calos could and he fussed about having no weapons in the hospital room, kicking them out.

Doctor Calos came over to her after closing the door behind them with a sigh.

"They sure are a handful, aren't they?" He said, giving the girl a slight smile that she returned geniuely for the first time.

"Yes. Indeed." The gatechild replied, though her mind was someplace else.

She had a name.

A name of her very own, not just 'Jane Doe'. The doctor watched her unusual eyes filled with a brightness, though his own were quite sad. He had no idea how he was going to fix the girl's problem. She was getting better faster than he anticipated, and he had been stalling the eventual outcome by misfiling her observation results.

_There is just no way around it. _ He thought sadly as he avoided the girls eyes, instead focused on writing observation notes on his clipboard.

That night, Evelyn dreamed of The Gate.

**Uh oh. I just gave you a break from all the angst and suddenly the group in thrown into turmoil once more. What could Dr. Calos know that all the other have not? I appreciate all of the views and I am pushing for a review. If not, i will have to take this story down and reformat it. People gotta let me know how they feel. .**

**Cheers & God Bless!**

**- Wi**


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